Amanda Marshall reflects on her first three albums as she readies a fourth

TORONTO — Amanda Marshall released three studio albums between 1995 and 2001 before effectively vanishing from the music scene.

As she releases her new single “I Hope She Cheats,” and prepares to unleash her fourth record “Heavy Lifting” in June, Marshall shared a few memories.

“Amanda Marshall” (1995)

Songs include: “Let It Rain,” “Birmingham” and “Dark Horse”

Taken under the wing of legendary Canadian blues and rock musician Jeff Healey as a teenager, Marshall cut her teeth in Toronto bars before her self-titled debut hit stores when she was 23 years old. Produced by David Tyson, co-writer of Alannah Myles’ No. 1 hit “Black Velvet,” the album ushered in a vocally confident and soulful young artist — and it hit huge. “Amanda Marshall” scored seven Top 10 singles and is one of only 24 albums by Canadian artists with Diamond certification status in Canada with more than a million copies sold.

Marshall says recording the album involved a substantial learning curve that pushed her beyond her comforts as a live performer.

“Singing in studio is vastly different than singing live,” she said. “That was the first time I was in a vocal booth by myself and taking direction.”

“Tuesday’s Child” (1999)

Songs include: “Love Lift Me” and “Believe in You”

Swept up by the momentum of her debut, Marshall went from touring to churning out a second album with noted producer Don Was, who had just finished working with the Rolling Stones. Without much time to prepare, Marshall says in retrospect the record became “an extension of the first” that explored “a lot of the same thing” but with bigger names behind the scenes. That included hit songwriters Carole King and Eric Bazilian, hot off Joan Osborne’s “One of Us.” The album sold 300,000 copies in Canada.

“When you’re in a studio environment with a booked producer and songwriters, the clock is tickin’, man,” she recalls. “Whoever has the best idea in the moment, you’ve really got to go.”

She added: “My regret about working with those great people is I was too creatively timid. It wasn’t that I was personally intimidated, I just didn’t know enough. I was a young person.”

“Everybody’s Got a Story” (2001)

Songs include: “Double Agent” and “Sunday Morning After”

More Top 40 pop-oriented than her previous efforts, “Everybody’s Got a Story” was sold as Marshall’s most personal project, with songs about growing up as a mixed-race only child.

Marshall describes the album as “almost like a theatre piece” .

“I don’t know that all the other records did that,” she says. “They kind of fell into place accidentally.”

“Everybody’s Got a Story” sold 100,000 copies and came as label executives girded against the threat of Napster piracy by giving their adult contemporary artists an edgier appearance. Marshall’s reserved “tomboy” look switched to a party girl vibe closer to R&B and pop artists of the time, which left some fans confused.

“The imaging was a reach,” Marshall acknowledges.

“To me, it’s just clothes. But I realized people read into everything. Why is she wearing a skirt? Why isn’t she wearing pants? (On tour) I was really conscious about being skinny and attractive, trying to fit into this external mould. That was a weird time in pop music. Everybody had an eating disorder. It wasn’t just the music business. It was everywhere.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 31, 2023.

David Friend, The Canadian Press